Cave of Great Adepts

In 2007 the rediscovery of a painted cave hidden in the barren mountain landscape of Upper Mustang, Nepal, hit the international headlines. Years passed without further information on the cave, the published mural and its context, save for an article providing only an initial assessment published in 2010. This website contains the full documentation of the cave's murals, accompanying an article written for the June 2014 issue of Orientations which offers a more precise reading and context for the cave.

Kanganhalli

Now that the excavation report of this fascinating early Buddhist site has been published, I decided to make my documentation from the early years of the new millennium publicly available. The more than 400 pictures have been taken in the course of a two day visit and are roughly arranged clockwise around the monument beginning on the east side. For more information on this documentation see the site page on Kanganhalli.

Flip Side

Since March 2013 Flip Side, The Unseen in Tibetan Art is on view at the Rubin Museum of Art. The exhibition reveals and explains the backs of selected Tibetan artworks for the first time. Be ready for surprises. A brochure planned to accompany the exhibit had to be abandoned, and what is being presented in the exhibit is so far unpublished.

Mustang Again

In May 2012 I had again the opportunity to visit Mustang, Nepal, called Lo locally. This time I spent twenty one days in the restricted area, saw the Tiji festival, a ritual dedicated to the deity Vajrakīlaya, visited sites I had not seen at my earlier visit, and also walked down the east side of the Kali Kandaki valley, a spectacular walk indeed. This journey was for a project on behalf of the Rubin Museum of Art about which I will inform in due course. Here are two picture galleries from this trip:

Storm King

One nice autumn day in 2011 I was invited to join a day trip to the Storm King Art Center an hour drive north of New York city. What an amazing park and art landscape to roam around and get new views with every step, even more so with the famous New York state autumn colors in full swing.

Kyoto

Thanks to an invitation of Ryukoku University, in Summer 2011 I finally had the chance to visit Kyoto and some surrounding historic places, what a revelation in both art and architecture. With my affinity to Buddhist art and Yoga Tantra, and a background in Indian art, this was certainly the best place to go to in Japan, and to learn from. Besides the quality of the art and architecture I was fascinated by those aspects of early Japanese Buddhist art that document a loss in translation (as well as adaptation and subsequent reinterpretation) from the wider South Asian area to Japan. Take the iconic Ashura from the Kofukuji in Nara, is he really explainable on the basis of an Indic background or must he not much rather be interpreted against the Iranic/Zoroastrian interpretation of the world? I also can't decide if I would rather move to Amitabha's phoenix palace at Uji or his gigantic world of the Todaiji at Nara. This is what samsara and desire are all about, or not?

New York

With 1st October 2010 I settled in New York. My books have arrived some month later and fill my modest but well located apartment. Living as an academic nomad—and haven't slept in my own bed—for many years, I am glad to have a different life style now. While searching for my present apartment, I shared a place with a view of New York as one imagines it in one's dreams ...

Mustang

Thanks to an extremely generous person I could visit Mustang in August 2010, a visit that had a considerable impact on me. Not only are the temples of Lo Manthang impressive in many respects, but in general the art and artistic heritage preserved in this region is remarkable. Needless to say, also the flights and the walks to get there and back are an exquisite experience in themselves. Astonishingly, on the way up we were accompanied by a group of bikers, who carried their bikes more than they could use them. Brave people indeed ...

This homepage mainly contains documentation complementing my work and some general information about it. The site
> provides information on diverse monuments and sites I have done research on,
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makes pictures complementing this research available, and I share for fun,
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contains information about my research and
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selected publications,
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contains the usual career information about myself, and
> records recent changes to the site for easy reference.

ITBA

My web site on Indian and Tibetan Buddhist Art (ITBA) has been discontinued and is now beeing integrated in this homepage. Please excuse the inconsistencies in the information provided until the integration has been completed and report dead links.

Technicality

It seems that now I can offer the picture galleries in better quality again, which for technical reasons on side of the service hosting my site was not possible earlier. Of course, this means that every gallery has to be newly uploaded.